Off Track
by Atemusluckygal
Summary: A re-write and expansion of episode 163. Téa and the pharaoh find themselves in a strange camp in the middle of nowhere, injured and unable to travel. The last thing they remembered was a train wreck. Until they fully heal, the travelers have no choice but to get comfortable. Revolutionshipping. Yami x Téa.


Disclaimer: I do NOT own Yu-Gi-Oh!.

Disclaimer 2.0: I DO own my original character, Silvermane.

Hi gang!

I often fantasize about being hired by the writing team to rewrite and expand certain scenes in the show, so we'd actually have some depth and development to work with. So, I guess you could say I'm using this piece to pretend. :3

Silvermane was necessary for my vision for this scene, so please bear with me on that. You'll probably like her anyway.

Enjoy.

ALG

* * *

 **Off Track** **  
**by Atemusluckygal  
ALG Series

 **CHAPTER ONE: Narrow Escape**

By the grace of the Gods, the pharaoh survived the fall, and even remained conscious at the bottom. The only river for miles happened to run where he and Téa came tumbling through the air as they fell hundreds of feet off of a cliff's edge after a rather violent train derail, and provided a cushion between him and certain death.

As Yami opened his eyes, he found himself treading water, as the river's current ushered him to the west, the opposite direction in which the train was traveling. As soon as his brain registered his consciousness, he searched frantically, in every direction, for his traveling companion.

Téa was nowhere to be found.

The pharaoh's hazy mind sprung into panic. "Téa!" He called. He bellowed her name, over and over again, listening closely for any response. He was rewarded only with the desert's shunning silence and the faint echo of his own voice. He swam to the river's edge, not realizing how physically exhausted he was until he heaved himself out of the water onto dry land. The numerous scrapes and bruises scattered throughout his body flared up at once. A rather stinging injury on his right calf could possibly need stitches, but nevertheless he forced himself to stand and search for his missing friend.

Yami finally caught a shape moving underneath the current, at first looking more like a large tree branch than a person. It only took him a few seconds to recognize the shape as an unconscious, limp Téa being swept downstream.

"No!" The panicked pharaoh dove back into the water, free-stroking along the current as fast as he could until he could grab a hold of her arm. He pulled her towards him and lifted her head above the surface. Her head sat heavily on his shoulder as he paddled their way back to the edge, using what energy he had left to fight the current. He could barely keep his own head above water—every muscle in his body screamed for rest, fighting him at every excruciating effort to get both him and the weight of an unconscious teenage girl to safety.

By yet another miracle, both travelers were on safe ground. The pharaoh managed to turn Téa over until she was lying on her back. He swept the soaked hair out of her face, and realized—with the look of her ghostly pale face and the inside of her lips lined with a soft blue—that she was not breathing.

Nearly overcome by exhaustion, anxiety, and emotional distress, Yami's vision clouded over. His body swayed to stay upright, as if an elephant were strapped to his back. "No...I must save her. If I give in, she won't make it..."

The tears came immediately, far too easily if he were in a normal state, a less-than-deadly situation. A wave of rushing desperation kicked him back into his dire present reality, his solitary mission to see to her survival, even at the cost of his own. He refused to be responsible for yet another loss of soul. He dug deep into his memory, remembering that a year or so ago, from the puzzle, he had listened in while Yugi was taking a CPR class at the local hospital for school credits.

"C—A—B, compressions, airways, breathing" Yami gasped from memory. Through his frustrated tears and racing heart, Yami did what he could remember, trying and failing to stay calm. He laid the heel of his hand flat over her sternum and upper rib cage, directly between her breasts, with the other flat over the first. He applied heavy pressure in a series of thirty or so pumps, keeping a watchful eye on her mouth and throat.

 _To perform rescue breaths, obstruct any possible air flow through the nostrils, and enclose your mouth over the recipient's, making sure the connection is air tight..._

He pushed her forehead back and tilted her chin forward, opening her mouth and airway. He pinched her nostrils shut and connected his mouth with hers, and gave her two rescue breaths, watching closely for the rise in her chest. He repeated these "CAB" steps about three times, each time more desperately and with more tears than the last, before Téa sprang to life, convulsing and retching as water came spewing out of her mouth and nose. Yami quickly turned her over on her left side as the entrapped water quickly left her, causing her to cough and sputter.

Relief washed over the pharaoh like a warm shower as he watched her lie on her back, wheezing and gasping for air. With his mission accomplished and the adrenaline fading fast, his body gave way and he collapsed beside the woman he had just rescued from the brink of death, his mind hastily leaving the realm of consciousness and his bodily offenses numbing into no feeling at all.

"Yugi, are you okay?" A faraway female voice asked him.

"Barely," was all that he could manage to say, and the world went dark.

* * *

 _"It only needs one of us, so I'm letting the Seal take me instead..."_

 _"No!" the darkened spirit protested, but it was just barely too late. The innocent and impossibly selfless soul of Yugi was already violently ripped from his side, absorbed by the Seal of Orichalcos, leaving him empty, cold, and alone. As soon as its harvest was collected, the Seal was gone, and the searing pain from Raphael's attack returned in full force, causing the pharaoh to collapse instantly._

Yami's eyes snapped open. Tears and beads of cold sweat moistened his face as he sat up, dazed from the recurring nightmare he could never escape. He was lying on a thick mat made from animal pelt beneath a light beige canvas teepee, and lying on him was a stiff, well-woven brown wool cover. He felt a tight pressure constricting his shin, and he pulled up his blood-stained pant leg to find that his injury had been neatly wrapped in gauze and bandaged. His jacket had been removed and placed on the ground next to him, folded neatly. His arms and shoulders were littered with scrapes and bruises big and small, as were his torso and hips. All of his open wounds had been washed and bandaged or covered. Considering the great height from which he fell, the extent of his injuries was surprisingly minor.

He looked to his right, and Téa lied next to him, still asleep, breathing normally to his great relief. Her jacket had also been removed and preserved, and her arms and shoulders carried their own share of scrapes, bruises, and bandages. From under her baby blue tank, Yami noticed a layer of bandages wrapped around her torso, just beneath her breasts, where he had likely bruised her ribs when resuscitating her. He cringed slightly.

"Téa... Téa wake up," the spirit whispered, shaking her shoulder as gently as he could. Her thickly-lashed, bright azure eyes fluttered open, and she sat up too quickly.

"Agh!" she hissed, holding her torso where the bandages protected her healing rib cage.

"Are you alright?" He asked immediately, feeling all too guilty for having caused her discomfort. He placed a tentative hand on her back, careful not to irritate any of her pains.

"Yeah, I'm...okay, I guess," Téa grimaced as she readjusted her sitting position. "All things considered."

Yami only nodded. His slight weariness brought a dull ache to his temples.

"Where are we?" Téa asked.

It was a good question. When Yami was searching for Téa, it seemed as if they were in the middle of nowhere, surrounded on all sides by only tall cliffs, patches of grass, and a few drought-resistant trees. There seemed to be no civilized life for hundreds of miles in any direction.

Before the pharaoh could respond with his lack of a real answer, a low, subdued growl entered his ears. Both travelers shifted their gaze to the entrance of the teepee, meeting eyes with an intimidatingly large grey wolf-like canine. And it was bearing its impressive predatory set of teeth at them, its lips curled up into a threatening snarl.

Only a moment passed when the hound leapt forward, straight for Téa. Yami panicked, preparing to wrestle a wolf off of her, when he noticed the growling was replaced with an affectionate licking, as if the wolf had just adopted the personality of a friendly Labrador. Téa laughed and ran her hands through its silver coat as it continued to lap its tongue across her face. It turned to Yami, and gave him his own slobbery greeting as well. Yami stiffened against it, entirely lost on how to handle this unfamiliar environment they were in, his body still tensed for danger.

"Sky!" A young, scolding child's voice pierced their tent. The wolf responded obediently, withdrawing from the pharaoh's lap and assumed its place next to its owner, a small rosy-cheeked girl of about 7 years of age, wearing a small brown hat over her long brunette braids and a garnet native child's dress.

"Sorry about that, she's really friendly and loves new people. Her name is Sky, and I am Chris."

"Hello, Chris," Téa greeted with a tired smile. "Can I ask, where are we? And how did we get here?"

"Well, technically Sky found you. She sniffed you out while looking for food! Grandpa and I went looking for her, and she led us to you by the river. You're in our camp now."

"Are they awake?" an elderly woman's voice called, as a gentle lavender scent wafted in the tent. Chris and Sky stepped aside to make room for the woman to enter. An exceptionally kind-looking grandmother figure, dressed in a mud brown tribal ankle dress that hung loosely over her round waist and full chest, smiled warmly at them. Her hip-length grey hair draped over her shoulders in messy waves. Her face carried a storybook of wrinkles and scars.

"I am Silvermane. You've already met my granddaughter Chris, and my wolf, Sky."

"Grandma bandaged you guys up. She used to be a tribal healer."

"And I still got it!" Silvermane said, huffing her chest proudly.

"Thank you for this," Yami said. "And for your hospitality. We truly are grateful."

"It was all fine, dear," answered Silvermane. "We could not just let you go on with all those nasty cuts and things. There is no city hospital for miles, and infection would kill you out here." She looked down at Chris with stern fists on her hips. "Now, where has your grandfather gone?"

"He went back to the river. He said the travelers dropped some things and he went to get them back."

"Alright," Silvermane said, seemingly content with the answer. "Well, you folks just stay and relax a while, and I will brew some tea. Don't hurt yourselves, now. I'm running out of bandages."

Silvermane, Chris, and Sky all exited the teepee, leaving Yami and Téa alone in silence. They looked at each other, reading similar expressions of bewilderment on each other's faces.

"I think we are in good hands," Téa whispered, keeping a careful eye on the tent's opening in case Silvermane or Chris would hear. Yami nodded in agreement.

The sun began to sink behind the mountains as Yami and Téa emerged from their quarters. Silvermane beckoned them over, and they gathered around a small campfire with Chris, each of them holding a clay cup filled with hot, spiced tea. The aroma surrounded them, soothing and welcoming.

"Forgive me, I did not get your names," Silvermane said.

"Oh, I'm Téa, and this is Yugi," Téa volunteered immediately. A shudder climbed the pharaoh's spine at the sound of Yugi's name, but he hid it well.

"Lovely to meet you both," said Silvermane. "And where are you traveling to?"

"Orlando," answered the pharaoh.

"That's a far ways away from here," said Chris.

"And how did you end up down here?" asked Silvermane.

"Well..." Téa began, looking to Yami worriedly.

"Our train crashed," Yami said, meeting her look. "Our car detached from the rest of the train, and we were looking for an emergency hatch on the roof when it derailed."

"You were in that train wreck?!" Silvermane gasped, shocked. "Well, the gods must certainly love you! People die from much less than that!"

"I know," said Yami. "We are incredibly fortunate that you all came along."

The elder smiled gently at them. Her expression changed as she saw something behind them. "Ah, there he is. I was beginning to worry."

Yami and Téa glanced behind them as a large elderly man approached their site, with a foot long grey beard hanging from his chin, wavy silver hair, and a white headband around his forehead. He carried a large crossbody satchel, full of bulky items.

"Thought I might grab dinner on the way back from the river," the man announced cheerily as he heavily dropped his satchel beside Silvermane. He planted a scruffy kiss on her temple, then finally turned to Yami and Téa. "Wonderful, you're awake! Name's Ironheart." He extended a hand to Yami. "You two gave us quite a scare."

Yami shook his hand firmly. "Yugi, and this is Téa. Sorry to have worried you. Thank you for seeing to our safety."

"Well, Yugi and Téa, I am owed very little credit. My wife is one heck of a healer. And Sky and Chris were my scouts."

Ironheart opened his satchel and pulled out two adult rabbit carcasses by the ears, causing Téa to squeak. Ironheart laughed. "Oh don't fuss my dear, they are both dead. And ready for my wife's award winning rabbit stew."

"Please join us for supper," Silvermane offered with a smile, as she took the rabbits.

"We mustn't impose," the pharaoh protested. "You've done so much for us already."

"Oh, we insist!" Silvermane exclaimed, with hearty conviction. "You both still need time to heal. And, if you leave now, you may go your whole life without having ever tried my stew. A life hardly worth living, indeed."

It turned out, the rabbit stew was as exceptionally delicious as Ironheart had promised. Everyone, including Sky, was more than satisfied by the meals' end.

"I believe it is about time," Silvermane said between yawns. "Chris dear, go on into my tent and fetch the wool blankets in my basket for Yugi and Téa." Chris nodded eagerly, handed her grandmother her empty bowl, and trotted out of sight.

"It gets quite chilly here at night, you know," Silvermane mentioned to Yami and Téa. "Make sure you keep each other warm. The last thing you kids need is to catch cold."

"Thank you," said Yami, as Chris reappeared and handed Téa a pile of blankets of various earth tone colors. "We will be on our way first thing tomorrow morning."

"Now you hush," Silvermane lightly tapped him on the shoulder in a playfully scolding manner, "you must stay longer. Your wounds need time to heal, and so does your woman's."

Yami's face immediately burned. He glanced nervously at Téa, who thankfully didn't seem to hear her. "Oh, she's not my—"

"Whatever you say, dear," Silvermane teased, suppressing a smirk. "Sleep well."

He bowed slightly. "Goodnight, and thank you again."

The pharaoh returned to the tent to find Téa arranging a bed space for them with Silvermane's blankets. She looked both tired and pained, no doubt the exhaustion and her physical grievances taking a toll on her.

"How are you doing?" He asked, sitting next to her.

"I've been better," Téa answered honestly. "But I'm alive, fed, and have a warm place to sleep, so I'm not about to complain."

"Right."

Dense silence filled the tent, as they respectively absorbed their new surroundings. The air was still and heavy with words yet to be said, emotions yet to be expressed. Yami took a deep breath, feeling his façade melting away.

"I'm sorry," The pharaoh finally said, so quietly and unconfidently it came out as a mousy whisper.

Téa frowned and sighed. "We've been over this, pharaoh. We've already forgiven you. It's time to move on."

"It's not just that anymore." His lowered hand gripped the blanket beneath him into a tightening fist. "I did not have to duel Weevil. It was naïve of me to believe he could actually help me get to Yugi. My guilt and desperation left me making thoughtless decisions—"

"What are you saying?" Téa interrupted him, grabbing his hand.

"We could have escaped the train crash."

Téa blinked rapidly and raised her brow skeptically. "No, we absolutely could _not_ have escaped the train crash."

The pharaoh met her eyes with his trademark intensity for the first time since before Raphael's duel. "Téa, if I had turned down Weevil's challenge, we all could have escaped. We could have found the emergency hatch and stopped the train, or we could have even jumped off. We could have still stayed near the tracks, and be at least a hundred miles closer to Joey and Tristan."

Téa opened her mouth to speak, but was instead interrupted by Yami withdrawing his hand from her hold, as if her touch burned him.

"My pride got in the way, and it kept me from simply resisting a challenge, no matter how many lives were in immediate danger. It has always been my weakness, and this time it cost us." He growled and turned away from her. "I wasted so much time just _playing cards_ , thinking I could get Yugi back… that I could finally redeem myself, just by winning a damn game. I let Weevil get to me, and as much as I hated him, I trusted him. I trusted him to deliver what he had promised, knowing very well how immoral and dishonest he is. I was blind, enraged, and foolish. And how I belligerently attacked him over and over again, long after the game was over… I've never craved power like that before. It was so unlike me, but it consumed the whole of me. I could not control it. Revenge was never the solution, and yet it gave me resolve."

"Pharaoh, you were only doing what you thought was right. No one is faulting you for that."

Swift, silent tears fell from his eyes, but he continued as if he didn't notice. _"I_ am faulting me for that, Téa. Don't you understand? I could have saved you. You wouldn't be here, hurt, away from your friends. You wouldn't be stuck here with me as your only company, someone so incapable of competence and yet so capable of destruction. Worst of all, if it weren't for me, Yugi would still be here, and none of you would be caught in the danger that always follows me. Everything horrible that has happened to you lately is all because of me."

"That's not true!" Téa snapped, raising her voice disconcertingly louder over his. It was even enough to make him jump slightly. "We all make mistakes, pharaoh. Every single one of us. Sometimes, we make multiple mistakes, in a row. It feels awful, and demoralizing, and sometimes you just want to die when it happens, but it has happened to every human being who has ever walked this planet. And you know how that happens? Worrying so much about the first mistake that we start making more.

So what you need to do now is pull yourself together and quit worrying about the past. If you keep dwelling, you are probably going to make another reckless decision—without using your head—that will get you killed. If that happens, the Seal of Orichalcos wins, Dartz wins, the giant soul-sucking eye wins, and mankind would stand no chance."

The sudden absence of sound rang in Yami's ears as the piercing weight her words sank in. Téa's honesty and bluntness was far from the unusual, but this was a side of her he had never seen.

Téa's face softened, seeming to suspect that her brashness had alarmed him. "I need you to climb this hill, pharaoh. Everyone does, especially Yugi. He wouldn't want to know that you've given up. He looked up to you and admired your confidence and bravado. Don't stop being the man he sees in you."

Yami turned away again, grief and guilt striking him full force. "He does not see me in that way anymore."

"Sure he does," Téa protested. She paused, hesitant with her next words. "I still do."

Yami met her eyes again, astonished. "You do?"

She smiled, and it soothed him a bit. "Of course." She yawned softly, covering her mouth with the back of her hand. "It's getting late and I am _beat_. We will continue this discussion later. Goodnight, pharaoh."

"Goodnight," the pharaoh whispered. "Thank you."

"Mmhmm" was all he heard, a murmur muffled by woven wool and exhaustion.

Téa crawled under the blankets, closing her eyes and resigning to a deep sleep. Yami, however, could not escape the world so easily. His façade was long dismissed, and he was forced to address the consuming despair he had pretended wasn't there for several hours, his heavy guiltiness that he had shoved in the back of his mind to ensure the safety of himself and his companion. It surrounded him like an invisible gaseous cloud.

Yami sat up and glanced at Téa. He wondered what it was that made her so determined to help him. He couldn't bear to imagine her disappointed in him again, like that day when he had to deliver the news of Yugi's abduction to the group. It was her reaction that stung the most; she was plainly conflicted by her unrelenting compassion, and the gravity of her loss. Her heart was ready to forgive him before her mind was. He could read all of it from her tear-filled eyes. Causing Téa hurt was something Yami hoped he would never do. And though he had done so, she still desired to support him.

A new lump swelled at the base of his throat, the precursory sign of another impending emotional release. Yami quietly left the tent, careful not to disturb Téa, and wandered towards the moon into the dark wilderness.

He made it to a nearby creek before his knees buckled and he fell to the stiff earth's floor, fresh stinging tears clouding his eyes and salting his cheeks. He wept to himself, loudly and bitterly.

"Yugi," he kept saying as he cried, "Yugi, I'm sorry."

The tears flooded his face and shirt, seemingly never ending. He kept imagining Yugi, hurt and wronged, standing over him, reprimanding the guilty spirit with his eyes, a hardened expression of resentment on his young face. The Seal's dark presence in Yami's heart purred inside of him, relishing in the spirit's suffering.

"Please forgive me..."

"Forgive you for what?"

The pharaoh, startled and suddenly embarrassed, sat up and hurriedly wiped the tears from his eyes. He turned to meet the tall silhouette approaching him, which calmly sat next to him and set his satchel down.

"Ironheart," Yami acknowledged him, surprised. "I'm sorry if I have disturbed you."

"Not at all," Ironheart assured the pharaoh. "Sometimes I come down here to meditate. I certainly did not expect to see you here."

Yami was silent, unable to respond. Ironheart reached into his satchel and pulled out something to show him. "I believe these belong to you."

"My cards," Yami said. He took the stack in his shaking hand. Timaeus was on the top, face up, glaring spitefully at him.

"I found them scattered along the river. Forgive me for being intrusive, but I couldn't help but notice that you hold the legendary Eye of Timaeus in your deck, the only one of its kind. It is a powerful beast."

The pharaoh singled out the card in his fingers, stared at it for a second and sensed that he could feel Timaeus's contempt as well as Yugi's, and held it out to Ironheart. "Take it. I am not deserving of its power."

Ironheart, surprisingly, accepted it without objection. "I'll hold onto it until you're ready."

Yami winced when he saw the next face-up card: Dark Magician Girl. He put the remaining cards in his card pocket, now imagining _her_ disappointed glare.

"You're not Yugi, are you," Ironheart said. It was hardly a question.

"No, I'm not."

"Then, who are you?"

The pharaoh stared out into the water, his eyes stinging again. He subdued his oncoming tears with great effort.

 _I am a monster,_ he thought.

"I don't even know anymore," he said aloud. "There is a greater power at work here."

"You know, I've encountered many people in my travels, but there's something in you that I've never seen before," Ironheart said, tapping his chin. "Something in your eyes."

 _So much evil in one man,_ thought Yami with a frown.

"You seem to have a wisdom that reaches far beyond your years," continued Ironheart, seeming to bear centuries of wisdom in his _own_ voice. "But I also sense a great deal of loneliness in your heart."

Yami stared down in his lap, forcing back another wave of tears. He looked as if he's a child about to admit his punishable offense to his strict mother. "Yugi is the young man whom I have betrayed. He was my closest friend and I let him down." The pharaoh drew a breath, trembling. "He is gone, and it's my fault. He paid for my mistake, and I'm left here alone to regret it more and more with each passing day. And now… I'm on a journey to find his soul."

"I see," Ironheart pondered. Yami was secretly grateful for the lack of harsh judgement in his voice. There was something unique about Ironheart—he waited patiently until Yami finished each thought before contributing, and he listened to understand rather than to respond. The accusatory glares he pictured from his friends somehow didn't fit on Ironheart's empathetic face. "And what would you say to him, if you were to find him?"

"I'd apologize," Yami answered softly, "for betraying his trust, and abandoning him."

It was silent. Ironheart seemed to absorb his words with careful thought and consideration. He pointed to the hills beyond the creek.

"Look there, my boy. Do you know what is behind those mountains?"

Yami shook his head.

"My people believe that human souls exist all around us, and just beyond this mountain is a sacred valley where drifting souls are said to gather as they wander."

"Drifting souls…" Yami echoed quietly.

"Your friend may be there. In fact, he would likely be. But… there are evil spirits there too. Spirits who may, perhaps, wish to seek revenge against you."

Yami wondered grimly if Yugi would be among those spirits. He wasn't sure he could blame him, either.

"A visit to that place would surely be dangerous; some would say, ill-advised," Ironheart warned. "Finding the soul you seek is easy. Leaving with your own is another thing."

Yami looked on and sighed, watching his breath frost into the chilly night.

"I must go. I owe it to Yugi."

Ironheart nodded, stroking his thick beard. "If that is your decision, then let's plan to go to the valley in a few days."

"A few days?!" Yami asked, a bit more ardently than he intended. Ironheart seemed calm, undisturbed.

"You and your companion still need to heal before taking that kind of journey. There are narrow ridges, steep climbing, and long stretches of walking and hiking. You're lucky that you're even alive. Take time to recover your strength, so that it doesn't hold you back later on."

The pharaoh opened his mouth to insist, but closed it again to grimace as his leg wound started to sting and his collection of bruises started to ache, as if protesting against the idea of a strenuous expedition. He thought of Téa and her bruised ribs.

"Perhaps you are right."

"And it's not just a physical recovery that you need," Ironheart added. "You must also prepare your mind. You must harness control over your anger, your fears, and your doubts. Your mental constitution must be strong as iron, or you make yourself vulnerable to the evil spirits you will attract. You can either feed them with your darkness, or starve them with your light."

"You are very wise," Yami remarked, contemplating his words.

"I can recognize the anguish you feel," Ironheart confessed. "I haven't seen my son in a very long time."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

It was Ironheart's turn to cast a forlorn gaze at the moon, looking as if he were watching a distant memory displaying before his eyes. "He's out there, somewhere, fighting his own battles. And he is losing."

"Chris's father," Yami murmured as the thought occurred to him. Ironheart nodded.

"I worry not only for my son, but Chris. She thinks the world of her father, especially since her mother passed away, and she knows very little of why he has not yet returned, after all this time. She used to ask me every night, before we go to sleep, if 'daddy will come home soon'. I always told her, 'someday, my child, someday'. I kept giving her hope, promises of an outcome I cannot guarantee, just so that she would not give up on him. The guilt for continuing to do so has brought me down here many nights, to do exactly what you came here to do."

Ironheart's face turned sorrowful as he dropped his gaze to the water. "She has stopped asking me about her father weeks ago."

Yami listened quietly and intently, practicing the same empathy as Ironheart had shown him. He looked at Ironheart's face, his wrinkled forehead casting a dark shadow over his eyes.

"Sometimes I wonder if I had told her the truth, things would be… different. Perhaps I could have saved her some pain. What if she finds out what is happening to her father, the hard way? The more I imagine it, the more I consider the grave mistake I've made."

"We all make mistakes," Yami said, echoing Téa's words. "You were only doing what you thought was right."

Ironheart met his eyes, and beneath the walnut hazel irises, Yami could somehow sense those eyes had witnessed generations' worth of atrocities and mayhems.

"I promise I will take you both to the valley, when you both are ready to go." Ironheart extended his hand to Yami. "Warrior's oath."

Yami shook his hand, smiling genuinely for the first time in far too long. "Thank you."

Ironheart adjusted his posture so that he was sitting cross-legged, facing the water, hands resting on his knees. He took a long breath, and exhaled with a deep, low sigh. "Meditate with me. It will help you find some peace of mind."

Yami nodded, copying Ironheart's position. He closed his eyes, not particularly well-practiced in meditation, but nevertheless let the soothing sounds of nature—the chirping crickets and the soft bustling of the creek—offer comfort to his aching heart.

TO BE CONTINUED

* * *

Hope you like so far. Will continue this and In the Body of a Boy simultaneously, as my mood sees fit.


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